SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 199 5- 201 2

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A c s h fy redu En SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

CONTENTS

Forewords and Key Achievements 3

Introduction 5

Performance 7

Investment in Technology and Estates 15

Finance 17

Audit & Scrutiny 21

Protective Services 25

Working in Partnership 27

Collaboration 29

Effective Planning & Community Engagement 31

Equality & Diversity 35

Human Resources 39

Quality of Service 41

Acknowledging and Representing our Communities 45

Looking to the Future 49

Our Members and Officers 50

1 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

2 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

Foreword from the Chair Foreword from the Police Authorities will be replaced by Police & Chief Constable Crime Commissioners in November 2012. As the November 2012 brings about one of the most final Chair of South Wales Police Authority, I am significant changes to Policing for decades, the advent proud of the legacy we will leave behind. of the Police and Crime Commissioner and transition The legacy statement of South Wales Police from the Police Authority. It is important to recognise Authority provides an overview of the the tremendous support the service has received achievements that our Members have made since from South Wales Police Authority over the years, to 1995, when the Authority became an independent assist us in achieving the success we see today. organisation. Our statutory duty has been to The legacy statement of South Wales Police ensure an effective and efficient police service, and Authority is a celebration of the achievement of to hold the Chief Constable to account. The legacy South Wales Police Authority and South Wales Police. statement shows how we have achieved this. The delivery of this success is founded on a strong Police Authorities have sometimes been criticised relationship crafted over many years with the for being anonymous and ineffective. This Members and the Chief Executive’s Office. document aims to dispel that myth, highlighting the Policing in Wales is particularly challenging in the range and quantity of the work we have been current climate; but with what I would describe as an involved in, and the difference we have made to enviable relationship with the Authority, we have the South Wales Police Force over the last 17 delivered a 29-year low in crime levels, an increase in years. crime detections and an increase in public confidence One of the main reasons that we have been able to by 20% since 2007. The service has delivered achieve such positive results as a Police Authority, significant efficiencies to meet the austerity challenge is because of the excellent working relationships with the support, governance and scrutiny of the we have had with our Chief Constables, both past Police Authority. and present. We wish to thank them for this. South Wales Police is in a strong position to meet the Thanks are also passed to the Members and current and future needs of the communities of Officers that have been part of this organisation, all South Wales. I am immensely proud of what has been of whom have played an integral role in our lasting achieved and would like to personally thank South legacy. Wales Police Authority Members for the strong legacy they leave and their support and dedication to Mr John Littlechild MBE JP the delivery of policing to South Wales. Chair of South Wales Police Authority Mr Peter Vaughan Chief Constable of South Wales Police

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KEY MESSAGES AND ACHIEVEMENTS • Crime levels in South Wales are the lowest • During the period 2001 to 2011, £30 million of they have been for nearly 30 years. cashable efficiencies were achieved and £19 million of efficiencies were delivered through • South Wales Police is the 10th most improved Project Reform and the Value for Money Plan. Force in Wales and England for reducing crime. This was the highest sum in any single year Recorded crime in the Force area dropped by since the inception of the Police Authority. 39% between 1995-96 and 2011-12 (from 143,018 to 87,350). This is equal to 55,668 • The Value for Money Plan outlines how the fewer victims of crime each year. funding reductions of the Government’s Comprehensive Spending Review will be • The number of incidents reported to the satisfied, whilst maintaining visible and Force reduced from 504,000 in 2006-07 to accessible policing and the essential services 437,000 in 2011-12. that support the front line. Positive assurances • Crime detection rates have risen from 24.5% have been provided to the Police Authority by in 2006-07 to 32.8% in 2011-12. Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary • Satisfaction of victims improved from 78.2% in (HMIC) and Wales Audit Office on their 2004-05 to 86.6% in 2011-12. The Force Financial Management and Value for Money moved from 43rd national position for overall arrangements. satisfaction in 2007 to 12th position by 31st • Members have consistently ensured that the March 2012. The satisfaction gap between Authority has been financially prudent, which is Black & Minority Ethnic and White victims is why the South Wales council tax precept level also closing. remains the lowest in Wales. • Public confidence was first introduced as a • In 2000, 1.3% of South Wales Police officers national target in 2009-10 and South Wales were from a Black or Minority Ethnic Police showed the greatest increase nationally background. By 2011 this had risen to 2.2%. in the initial 6 months, moving from 40% to In 1999, 13.5% of South Wales Police officers 46.9%. By March 2012 public confidence had • were female. By 2012 this had risen to 23.8%. risen to 60.1% The Police Authority also appointed the first • The Force has improved from being, at one female Chief Constable in Wales when we time, the worst performing Force in England appointed Barbara Wilding in 2003. and Wales for police officer and police staff In 2012, the Force moved to 23rd in the sickness absence. Average working days lost • Stonewall Top 100 Employers index - a list of per year have decreased from 13.8 per officer Britain’s most gay-friendly workplaces. This in 2000-01 to 9.3 in 2007-08, and 15.4 per rating was the highest among Wales Police police staff member in 2000-01 to 9.7 in 2007- Forces and the second highest-rated UK Police 08. With sickness absence now measured in Force in the 2012 list. ‘hours lost’, targets continue to be met and exceeded. • Between April 2002 and March 2012, our volunteer Independent Custody Visitors made • Service delivery to the public has been 5094 visits to custody, checking on the welfare transformed by introducing the ‘one stop shop’ of 7774 detainees. Public Service Centre.

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INTRODUCTION South Wales Police Authority is the independent The South Wales Police area is split into four body, which has overseen South Wales Police to policing divisions (Northern, Eastern, Central and make sure that our communities have received a Western). These are known as Basic Command first class policing service. The Authority became an Units (BCUs). independent organisation on 1st April 1995. It is a diverse region, boasting urban, rural and Our membership has been made up of 10 coastal areas and features two of the three large Councillors and 9 Independent members. These cities in Wales – Swansea and the Capital City, Members have represented the communities of Cardiff. South Wales and have acted as the bridge between The scale and complexity of the incidents the public and the police. routinely dealt with by South Wales Police make the Force unique within Wales. In a recent Our Area benchmarking exercise, Her Majesty’s Although geographically small, the South Wales Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC), showed us Force area has responsibility for 42% of the Welsh to have the 5th highest demand for policing population. Our area also attracts an estimated 25 services in England and Wales. million visitors each year and stages nearly 200 Each year, South Wales Police: major events. A total of 47% of the crime in Wales occurs in the South Wales Force area. • Deals with around 430,000 incidents We cover the seven local authority areas of • Receives over 200,000 emergency 999 calls Bridgend, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, Neath Port Talbot, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Swansea and Vale of • Makes over 38,000 arrests Glamorgan. • Deals with over 87,000 crimes

MERTHYR TYDFIL WESTERN NORTHERN NEATH SWANSEA

PONTYPRIDD

BRIDGEND EASTERN HEADQUARTERS CARDIFF CENTRAL

BARRY

5 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

Police Authority Responsibilities The overall duty of the Police Authority has been Police Authority Members and Officers have to ensure an efficient and effective police service, carried out their roles with dedication in order to by holding the Chief Constable to account. deliver on these responsibilities. Over the last three years, each Member has given an average Our duties have included: of 28 full working days per year to their role and • Setting the policing priorities, following has attended an average of 38 meetings or events consultation with the public and the Chief per year. Constable In order to carry out our business in the most • Publishing an Annual Policing Plan and Annual effective way, the Authority has worked within a Report comprehensive governance structure to oversee • Appointing and, if necessary, dismissing the the work of the Force. This has included the Chief Constable, Deputy and Assistant Chief existence of a number of sub-groups, each with Constables their own specialism. • Holding the Police Fund and maintaining The sub groups have concentrated on accounts performance, audit and scrutiny, equality, human resources, community engagement, quality of Setting the police precept of the local council • service and protective services. tax They have been made up of a small number of Investigating complaints made against Chief • Police Authority Members, who have scrutinised Police Officers and monitored each area of the policing business. • Monitoring complaints of police staff and The groups have been chaired by an allocated officers up to the rank of Chief Superintendent Police Authority Member who has taken lead responsibility for that area of business. • Monitoring Force performance Our governance structure was highlighted as a • Scrutinising the work of the Police Force to ensure practices have been efficient and particular strength within an inspection by HMIC effective and the Wales Audit Office in 2010. • Promoting equality and diversity in the Force and Authority • Hearing police staff appeals against dismissal • Adjudicating on forfeiture of police pensions • Maintaining an effective Independent Custody Visiting Scheme • Complying with directions from the Home Secretary in relation to budget requirements, performance targets or following an adverse report by HMIC.

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PERFORMANCE Performance Monitoring Performance monitoring has been a primary area of work for the Police Authority. This has included setting appropriate priorities and targets for the Force, monitoring any ongoing trends and identifying reasons why performance has or has not been improving. Members have scrutinised Force performance in detail through the Performance Monitoring Group. This has enabled Members to identify where improvements have been needed. In 2009-10 the Authority agreed a five-year programme of targets for the Force, which was both challenging and ambitious. This was underpinned by three principles: 1 No performance target figures were to be lower than those set for the previous year 2 The Force was to aim for an average Most Similar Force (MSF) 1 position within 12 months Confidence and Perception In considering the performance of the Force, it 3 The Force was to aim for an MSF position of has been important to measure public confidence first or second within three years. in the police service and the perception of crime These driving, ambitious targets were set before in local areas. This has been measured, in the funding challenges were imposed. Since the particular, through surveys from the Force and Comprehensive Spending Review announcement, the results of the national British Crime Survey. the Authority Members have worked closely with Members have monitored and scrutinised public the Chief Constable to ensure that performance perception closely to look for improvements. levels for the Force have continued to improve, Public confidence was first introduced as a despite the cuts. To date, these have been national target in 2009-10 and South Wales Police maintained, and targets continue to be achieved. showed the greatest increase nationally in the The Police Authority has been determined to initial 6 months, moving from 40% to 46.9%. By continue the lowering of crime levels. This has March 2012 that had risen to 60.1%. Members been achieved through the Authority acting as an have been impressed with this performance and effective critical friend, having regular meetings have continued to push for further and discussions with Force Chief Officers. improvements.

1All police forces in England and Wales are allocated to a ‘Most Similar Force’ (MSF) group by the Home Office for performance comparisons. The South Wales Police MSF consists of Cleveland, Durham, Lancashire, Northamptonshire, Northumbria, Nottinghamshire, South Wales and South Yorkshire.

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Crime Reduction This performance reduction has been achieved, despite the financial pressures, as a result of: As a Police Authority, we realised that as well as bringing in new initiatives to help prevent crime • The hard work of all of the police officers and and make the service more efficient, there staff within South Wales Police needed to be a reduction in the number of • The determination of the Chief Officer team, offences committed. appointed by the Police Authority This has been one of the key priorities for the • The scrutiny, monitoring and target-setting of Police Authority, as it was a measurable way to Police Authority Members, who have asked establish improvements within the service. Our serious questions of the Force when long-term programme of target setting, which has performance has dropped and have continued provided a consistent challenge and a focus on to look for improvements when it has been continuous improvement, has had a significant increasing. impact on crime reduction. The graph below shows the decrease in recorded There has been a 39% drop in overall crime crime over the last ten years, from over 140,000 since 1995-96, which is equal to 55,668 fewer to under 90,000 crimes per year. victims each year. In 1995-96 there were 143,018 recorded crimes compared with 87,350 in 2011-12. Between April 2011 and March 2012 alone, there was a 6.9% drop in crime, which was equal to 6,440 fewer victims. The crime levels in South Wales are now the lowest they have been for nearly 30 years.

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Domestic Burglary Recent Home Office figures show a significant reduction in the number of homes burgled in South Wales. The graph below shows how this has improved significantly since 2002-03.

Violence against the Person There have also been significant reductions in recorded crimes involving violence against the person, as shown in the graph below. A high proportion of this type of crime is alcohol related, and the Force has continued to work with partners and the business community to tackle these issues.

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Anti-Social Behaviour Our consultation results with the public have regularly shown us that tackling anti-social behaviour has been a priority for our communities. Authority Members have strongly encouraged the Force to tackle anti-social behaviour concerns and have been pleased with the initiatives the Force has introduced to do this. This has included the introduction of an anti-social behaviour database, which is used by partner agencies across South Wales. The graph below highlights the fall in the level of anti-social behaviour over the last three years.

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Detection Rates Along with reducing the amount of crime that occurs in South Wales, the Authority Members have placed tough targets on the Force in relation to the number of crimes detected. Members have consistently looked for detection rate improvements, as they recognise that a reduction in crime needs to be complemented with an increase in detection rates to improve public confidence. Over the years, there have been fluctuations in detection rates. In 1995-96, 31% of crimes were detected. This dropped to 24.5% in 2006-7. Pleasingly, by 2011-12, detection rates had increased to 32.8%. Detections for violence with injury have improved by 12.5% to 57.3% during the last year and detections for most serious violence improved by 15.2% to 68.5% during 2011-12. Authority Members have had a significant impact on this, by putting in place an excellent Chief Officer team and constantly questioning and pushing the Force to improve performance through the Performance Monitoring Group. The increase in detection rates over the last ten years is outlined in the graph below.

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Victim Satisfaction March 2012 data shows that the Force has moved from 43rd national position to 12th The Police Authority has had a responsibility to position for the satisfaction of the ‘whole contact victims of crime to assess their experience’ following the reporting of a crime. satisfaction with the service they have received This is clearly a positive improvement that the from the Force. The Force has carried out this Authority and Force are proud of. duty on our behalf, and Members have monitored the process. The Authority has supported the Force in improving victim satisfaction. This has included Each police force is assessed on five areas of approving the introduction of an in-house survey service provision: ease of contact, actions taken, team, which has allowed for victim’s issues to be follow up, treatment and whole experience. researched and responded to. For a number of years, Members were very concerned with the service satisfaction figures, as South Wales Police was placed 43rd out of 43 national forces in terms of satisfaction rates. In particular, the satisfaction for the follow-up to victims of crime was very low, meaning that victims were not being provided with enough updates on the progress of investigations. The chart below highlights the improvements which have been made to change this over recent years.

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Attendance Management In 2001, the Police Authority highlighted that attendance management was a concern within the Force. Members were concerned that too much policing time was being lost as a result of sickness absence. They felt that work needed to be carried out to understand the reasons behind the high absence levels and to press for measures to be put in place to effectively address attendance management procedures and provide any additional support that officers or staff needed. Since then, the management and measurement of attendance has been strong within the Authority, and absence levels have reduced significantly in the Force. In 2000-01, the average number of working days lost through sickness per police officer was 13.8. The average for police staff was 15.4 days. Due to the work put in place, and the monitoring by the Authority, this average dropped to 9.3 days for police officers in 2007-08, and 9.7 days for police staff. Since 2008, sickness absence has been measured in ‘hours lost’ and the Police Authority has set targets for the Force in accordance with the new measurement methods. Most recent 2012 figures show that the targets have been met and exceeded for both police officers and police staff.

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14 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

INVESTMENT IN TECHNOLOGY AND ESTATES Information & Communication Support and approval for these investments has been granted by the Police Authority, which has Technology been a collaborative venture with other forces in Over the last 17 years, there has been vast Wales. growth in the use of Information Technology within the police service. This has been particularly critical to ensure effective iR3 system performance within the Force. The Police Authority agreed to the procurement Police Authority Members have been committed of the IR3 Resource Management and Decision to improving the performance of the Force Support Solution. This is an innovative ICT through significant investments in new equipment support system designed for the organisation’s and software that help to improve the policing need to deploy staff and vehicles in response to business. Our investments have not only led to relatively unpredictable levels of demand. It performance improvements but to significant monitors against organisational targets, and savings. pinpoints excess and insufficient resources, helping to make performance transparent, and When approving systems, Authority Members managers accountable. have questioned and scrutinised the potential benefits they could bring to performance, The system is able to track vehicles and officers, ensuring that the right decisions have been made which allows for more efficient responses to to lead to the most positive outcomes. incidents. The Police Authority’s approval of this system underpins our commitment to improving Our investments have included: Force performance against the single confidence target and neighbourhood policing. Having the Niche IR3 system as part of the Fleet Strategy led to £1.1 million of savings in 2011-12 alone. This is a records management system, which has allowed for the connection and sharing of information between different departments in the Force. It has created significant time savings for police officers and staff and has also been recognised as a major contributor in the increase of crime detections.

Mobile Data One of the great advances for the police service in recent years has been the increased use in Automatic Number Plate mobile data technology, funded by a Home Recognition (ANPR) Office/National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) project. This has included providing hand The Authority approved the introduction of held computers and mobile phones to community Automatic Number Plate Recognition cameras officers, which has enabled PCSOs and Officers across major roads in South Wales, which has to leave their police stations more often so that contributed to enhanced crime detections and they can work within their local communities. improved Force performance.

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Estates • Talbot Green Police Station South Wales Police Authority has been • Barry Police Station responsible for the largest estate of any Police • The opening of a Scientific Support Unit in Force outside London. Many of the buildings and 2006. This provided South Wales Police with premises we have are old, in the wrong location state of the art facilities to investigate crime or are in poor condition. effectively and efficiently. In order to be an effective police service, which is fit for purpose for modern day requirements, the Bridewells Police Authority has put in place a long term Estates Strategy. This has included investing in As well as being a state of the art police station, new police stations and renovations in the places the new Cardiff Bay building has also become a where they were most needed, and disposing of Bridewell, where detained people from Cardiff older, unused properties. and the Vale of Glamorgan can be held in custody within one of the 74 cells available. This model So far, around £30 million has been spent on has proved to be an efficient way of handling projects the Authority has supported, including: detainees because police officers, staff and • Cardiff Bay Police Station expertise can be held under one roof. • Swansea Central Police Station Due to the success of this project, the Police • Neath Police Station Authority has approved the building of three further Bridewells. Along with the Bridewell at • Aberdare Police Station Cardiff Bay, this will provide them at four • Porth Police Station strategic points in the South Wales area. It is hoped that this will improve efficiencies further. • Treforest Police Station

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FINANCE Budget The Police Authority has been responsible for setting the council tax precept each year. This has South Wales Police Authority has had the key always been a difficult decision for Members, who responsibility of setting and holding the budget have had to balance the requirements of the for the Force, which for 2011-12 stood at £249 Chief Constable with the need to keep the tax million. This has involved continuous monitoring liability on the public to the minimum. of the accounts and reserves, and setting an appropriate level of council tax precept. In The increases imposed by the Authority have addition, the Authority has worked diligently to always been carefully considered and required to deliver efficiency savings across the service and ensure the Force has been as effective as has carefully monitored and scrutinised possible. Members have consistently ensured that expenditure throughout the year. the Authority has been financially prudent, which is why the South Wales council tax precept level A total of 73% of the funding for a Police remains the lowest in Wales, by over £30 each Authority has been made up of Government year. funding and 27% has come from the Local Police precept element of council tax. In setting the budget, Members have ensured that the finances have been consistently monitored The Government funding consists of Central through the year. This has been carried out via Government and Welsh Assembly grants. The our Audit and Scrutiny Group and at full Police level of these grants is determined using a funding Authority meetings. formula, which takes into account different aspects of policing, including the size of the area and how busy the Force area is. For 2011-12, the Efficiency Savings funding formula showed that that South Wales The requirement to develop annual efficiency Police should have received £7.99 million more plans in the police service was introduced in than the £170.3 million which was actually 1999-2000. The initial target was 2% - of which received. This was because the money had to be 1% was to be cash releasing efficiency savings re-allocated to other forces to give them a and 1% non-cash releasing (productivity minimum amount of funding. improvements). The target was increased in South Wales Police is responsible for policing 2005-06 to 3% annual efficiency savings with half Cardiff, our nation’s capital city, yet this has not of these being cash releasing. Due to the historic been reflected in our funding. The Authority has under-funding of South Wales Police, we have had argued that it cannot be right that Lothian and to exceed the national targets to achieve a Borders and the Metropolitan Police Service balanced budget, which in latter years has been receive additional funding for policing the capital achieved through budget cuts. cities of Edinburgh and London, yet we do not In 2007-08, Police Authorities were expected to receive anything for the additional responsibilities deliver a further efficiency target of 9.3% for the of policing Cardiff. Members and officers have period 2008/09 to 2010-11. During 2009-10 this extensively lobbied politicians in Westminster and efficiency target was increased yet again with a the Welsh Government to achieve fair funding on requirement to deliver a further 1% of efficiency behalf of our communities, and we hope that this and productivity gains of increasing the overall will be continued by the Police & Crime target to 10.3% by 2011. Commissioner.

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Throughout all of this, we have achieved, and The Authority and Force have worked to achieve exceeded these tough targets, which have helped the results by reducing police numbers through us to address the further funding restrictions, natural retirement and through difficult decisions extended following the Comprehensive Spending to retire some officers with more than 30 years Review in 2010. service by using the A19 police regulation process. For police staff the reduction has been The cumulative cash releasing savings of £68 achieved through a combination of natural million over the period, coupled with productivity wastage, early voluntary retirement and a minimal gains to date result in a total efficiency number of redundancies. improvement of well in excess of £100 million or 33% of gross expenditure. This is a considerable When making these decisions, Members have achievement when considered in conjunction taken into consideration the requirements of local with substantial operational improvements policing, representations from trade unions and through reductions in crime and victims of crime. the need to balance the budget. They have also considered risk management issues, particularly those arising from the cut in staff and officers. Funding Challenges Whilst it was clear that reduction of such scale The Comprehensive Spending Review 2010 set would obviously have an impact, every effort has out the Government’s four-year plan to address been made to ensure that the impact on the the national budget deficit, and aimed to reduce delivery of services to our communities has been public expenditure by £81 billion. minimised. The impact on South Wales Police was a The Medium Term Financial Strategy recognised reduction in resources of 20% in real terms, with some of the resources required to mitigate the 85% of the reductions falling within the first two risks, including the need to address custody years (during 2011-12 and 2012-13). This was the provision and operational hubs; and the need to greatest reduction in police funding for a address fleet maintenance provision, and realise generation and the pace has been collaborative opportunities. unprecedented. The overall budget deficit to The work carried out in this area has been 2016 is forecasted to be £47 million, and when highlighted during a recent HMIC inspection, inflationary factors have been taken into where it was considered to be progressing well consideration this rises to £55 million. and able to meet the challenges ahead. This has been one of the most challenging periods for Authority Members, and the challenge will continue to face the incoming Police and Crime Project Reform Commissioner. The Reform programme was introduced in support of the Chief Constable’s ambition to Given that over 80% of the police budget is spent design a service which is fit for purpose and puts on staff pay, reductions in staffing levels for both customers, victims, witnesses and the public at police officers and staff have been unavoidable. the heart of everything we do. It enabled specific Following careful consideration of the budgetary areas of Force business to be redesigned where constraints, Members approved the Medium necessary in order to achieve these aims. Term Financial Strategy, outlining planned savings As a result of Project Reform the Force and equivalent to a reduction of 688 staff - 256 Police Authority have achieved full-year savings in officers and 432 staff members over the four year excess of £17 million, with £2.9 million being period. realised from the work-streams detailed overleaf.

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Due to the complexity of Project Reform a Force Business Centre (FBC) – The FBC specific governance process was developed, to work-stream aimed to review the financial ensure transparency of decisions, participation, administrative support functions including equality and inclusiveness, accountability, and Procurement and Estates, in order to provide a efficiency and effectiveness for every aspect of more cost-effective service to BCUs and the project’s work. departments, recognising the duplication of effort between the centre and BCUs/departments. This governance process included a Quality Assurance Panel that consisted of several Communities & Partnerships – This work- members including two Police Authority stream focused on functions including Members, one of whom acted as Chair. The neighbourhood policing, youth offending, panel has introduced an enhanced form of minority support and Princes’ Trust. The aim was scrutiny, challenging the cost effectiveness of to review the form and function of a corporate processes whilst having an eye on performance department versus local delivery on the BCUs; and the effect of any changes on the communities taking into account the cross functionality with served by the Force. external organisations. The project has consisted of a number of work Public Protection Unit – This work-stream streams to date: aimed to review the functions and level of service provision in the Public Protection arena, Public Service Centre (PSC) – the PSC work- examining the need for localism versus stream’s aim was to improve customer service at centralism. It focused on the risks to South Wales the first point of contact; transforming the three Police, evaluating the functions and the means of Area Control Rooms and Contact Management service provision. Centres into a single hub for call handling and resource deployment. Disclosure – The disclosure work-stream aimed to review the processes of disclosure; a complex Admin Support Units (ASUs) – The ASU area of business and one with significant risk. manages much of the paperwork and information Having reviewed in excess of four hundred needed to make sure crimes or incidents are processes, the team recommended the need to processed. The aim of this work-stream was to bring together the disparate areas and create bring together the units that undertook these multi functional pools, providing efficiency savings functions to identify gaps, eliminate the and greater resilience. repetition, and ensure a consistent approach to implementation. Station Opening Hours – Work was initially undertaken to scope the demand at the front Analysts – The analyst work-stream aimed to desks across the Force area and determine a cost review the functions of crime and performance effective way forward for service provision. analysis. Both functions are critical to the fight Following the initial review it was recommended against crime, providing officers with a significant that a more detailed analysis be undertaken, and amount of information about crimes that have that this work be looked at as part of a wider happened, patterns of crime that might happen Accessibility Strategy. and areas and groups of people that might be more prone to experiencing crime than others.

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20 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

AUDIT AND SCRUTINY Audit South Wales Police Authority has worked with Members have been in a position to consider internal and external auditors to ensure we have these and scrutinise the improvements put in been efficient and effective. The auditors have place as a result. provided independent scrutiny into the work of A considerable amount of work has taken place the Force and Authority. on audit, with Members having received over 25 Our internal auditors have been able to provide reports each year. Between 2007-08 and 2011- us with reviews and updates on different areas of 12, 168 internal audit reports were considered by our work, giving us professional opinions on the Members. An overview is provided in the table effectiveness of the risk management, governance below. and control frameworks.

Regular audit reports have been submitted to the Authority for consideration, offering different levels of assurances and recommendations for improvements regarding practices within the Force or Authority.

Year Substantial Adequate Limited Audits Other Completed Assurance Assurance Assurance

2011-12 29 6 21 2 0

2010-11 27 7 15 4 1

2009-10 36 15 9 2 10

2008-09 36 13 10 5 8

2007-08 40 16 11 49

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Audit reports have been completed on a range of In 1994-95, the District Audit Management Letter issues, including: from the Wales Audit Office stated that ‘Budgetary control has been one of the main • Payroll problem areas for the Force over the past few • Estates years…In addition to the undoubted budget • Freedom of Information constraints imposed by the financing limits, control within the allocations has been poor’. • Efficiency Savings In 2010-11, the Annual Audit Letter was • Budgetary Control particularly positive, and stated that ‘the • Firearms Licensing Authority has an effective internal control • Media Relations environment which reduces the risk of material misstatement to the financial statements’. In 2012 PAYE Review • the auditors stated that ‘there were no significant • Seized Property concerns about the qualitative aspects of • Treasury Management accounting practices and financial reporting’. • Sponsorship • Procurement Scrutiny Panel The Authority has also been subject to internal In 2009 South Wales Police Authority agreed to audit and scrutiny, and this has included looking at introduce an additional layer of scrutiny in the Members’ Allowances and Expenses, Corporate form of a Scrutiny Panel, made up of six Authority Governance and Performance Management Members. The Panel was linked to the Audit and Framework. These have all resulted in Substantial Scrutiny Group within the governance structure. Assurance levels being received. In 2010, our However, Members from all Groups could call in corporate governance structure was audited, and an area for scrutiny. it was found that we had in place “a sound system The main function of the Scrutiny Panel was to of internal controls designed to achieve the challenge the Force on an agreed subject and to system objectives”. provide a report to the full Police Authority, outlining any recommendations that required External Audit approval. Key to this was working with partners wherever necessary. In addition to internal audit work, Wales Audit The principles for the scrutiny work were: Office has been the external auditor for the Authority. Their role has been to monitor our • To provide a ‘critical friend’ challenge to spending, to ensure we have been accountable decision makers and have offered the best possible value for • To reflect the voice and concerns of the public money. Regular inspections have been carried out and communities of South Wales by the Wales Audit Office and each year, an Annual Audit Letter has been provided. • To scrutinise, evaluate and report to the full Members have also received regular updates membership of the Police Authority from the Wales Audit Office, who have attended • To contribute to the ability of South Wales meetings of the Audit and Scrutiny Group. Police to provide an efficient and effective We have always looked to improve our position service to the public. in terms of financial and budgetary control, and have made significant progress.

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Our internal auditors and external auditors have Other areas that the Scrutiny Panel have highlighted the scrutiny approach used by South conducted investigations on have been: Wales Police Authority as good practice. In • Collaboration addition, the HMIC and Wales Audit Office inspection in 2010 said our scrutiny area of work • The Partnerships & Communities Together was ‘performing well’. (PACT) process • Vetting Scrutiny - Safeguarding Children • Partnerships The safeguarding of children is one example area • Risk Management that the Authority considered via its Scrutiny • iR3 and Mobile Data Benefits Realisation Panel. This took place following the publication of a Serious Case Review in 2010 in relation to In 2010, the Authority’s PACT scrutiny process ‘Children E’. The review had involved 46 agencies and recommendations was shortlisted for a ‘Value over 19 years, including South Wales Police. The for Money’ award at the Association of Police official Review made 51 recommendations, Authorities (APA) Excellence Awards. including six for South Wales Police and one for South Wales Police Authority. Best Value Reviews Each of these recommendations had been Best Value was a legislative requirement for all successfully addressed prior to the scrutiny panel public sector bodies in 1999. The Best Value set-up. However, Members, particularly those Review Programme was brought in to ensure that from the Protective Services Group, wanted to different areas of the Authority and Force’s work ensure that all areas had been considered and to were efficient and effective. The Force and find out if any further improvements could be Authority developed a five-year Best Value plan made. Members spent a significant amount of to ensure that different areas of the Force’s work time looking at all of the issues involved and areas were efficient and effective. This speaking to partners. programme was overseen by the Authority. Amongst those questioned by the Police Each review made detailed recommendations for Authority were the Children’s Commissioner for improvement. Some of these were implemented Wales, local authority staff and officers from during the review period as ‘quick wins’ with little South Wales Police and HMIC. or no cost and impact on staffing or policy, while Recommendations from the Scrutiny Panel’s others were longer term changes, which helped report included that public awareness of the to shape the police service. The programme work of Safeguarding Children’s Boards was helped us to learn, and look at ways the Authority needed to encourage victims of abuse to come and Force could improve. forward and that work should be carried out to We developed our planning process to capture ensure the needs of the victims and families this information so that resources were would be taken into account in Serious Case appropriately allocated and prioritised. This Reviews. The outcome of this scrutiny has been enabled us to look at the organisation in detail so very positive, and we have been impressed with that we could make the most of the finance the work being carried out by the Force to build available to us and continuously improve our and strengthen relationships with partner service. agencies.

23 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

Best Value Reviews were conducted on a number and the transition to Police and Crime of business areas, including: Commissioners. • Anti-Social Behaviour • Attendance Management • Call Management • Citizen Focus • Criminal Justice • Estates Management • Police Staff • Air Support (in collaboration with Gwent Police) Each of these reviews led to improvements in the efficiency and effectiveness of services delivered.

External Scrutiny Police Authority Members have also worked with partner agencies to carry out scrutiny roles. This has included working with local authority scrutiny panels, crime and disorder scrutiny panels and Community Safety Partnerships to consider areas of work that affect community safety. For example, a Police Authority Member sat on the Rhondda Cynon Taf Local Service Board Scrutiny Panel. This group looked into the issues surrounding domestic abuse, including: • Reporting mechanisms • Support provision for victims • Advice centres • Vulnerable women and children • Delivery of a local action plan The membership of the Police Authority Member on this panel was able to link local issues surrounding domestic abuse with the pan-South Wales strategic work which was ongoing. Members and officers have also been involved in national groups through the Association of Police Authorities, which have monitored and scrutinised wider areas of work, such as equality

24 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

PROTECTIVE SERVICES Since the 2005 ‘Closing the Gap’ report from Protective services includes: HMIC, Protective Services has been at the • Counter-terrorism and domestic extremism forefront of Police Authority work. We have improved our monitoring role in relation to this • Major crime, such as murder area, and have made the world of Protective • Protecting vulnerable people Services more accountable through strong • Domestic Violence working relationships. • Serious organised and cross-border crime In 2008, we restructured our governance structure to make it more robust. This resulted in • Civil contingencies and emergency planning the creation of a new Protective Services Group, • Critical incident management to lead on the monitoring of issues in South • Air support Wales. Since its establishment, the Group has become one of the most demanding Groups of • Cyber crime the Authority in terms of Member involvement. • Public order • Strategic roads policing

25 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

Each Member of the group took on a lead The Chair was a member of the National responsibility for at least one aspect of Protective Olympics Oversight Group, and regularly Services. This lead Member approach has led to attended national meetings in London. strong working relationships between the Force In addition, the Protective Services Group and Authority, along with extra accountability for Members received regular and comprehensive the work being carried out in the Force. presentations and reports on progress with The Chair of the Group, vetted to Developed Olympics Planning. This included updates on Vetting level, was heavily involved in a range of plans for the football events taking place in additional meetings and briefings in connection Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium and for the Torch with counter terrorism work in South Wales, at Relay, which was to travel through each local the Police Authorities of Wales level and at authority area in South Wales. national level. Additionally, due to Cardiff’s status Presentations covered the exercises being as a host city for the Olympics 2012, the Chair undertaken to test plans, the arrangements being was involved in the security preparations for put in place to ensure that South Wales these events. communities continued to be effectively policed during the games and, additionally, the financial Olympics Planning matters relating to Olympic grants and expenses that were available for policing the Games. The Police Authority shared two main concerns with the Force when planning for the London Members of the Authority were able to provide 2012 Olympics – that the games themselves were effective oversight of arrangements given that to be safe and that communities in South Wales they were well-briefed, with the added would remain effectively policed during the games. confidence provided through the particular work of the Protective Service Group Chair. The Police Authority had a direct involvement in the planning of policing for the Olympics through its Protective Services Chair.

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WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP Police Authorities of Wales In 2007, PAW became responsible for a number of statutory functions in addition to continuous improvement of policing, monitoring police performance and holding the Chief Constables to account on behalf of Welsh communities. In March 2008, Police Authorities Wales published the National Policing Plan for Wales, which was recognised as a first for the regional delivery of collaborative policing. In particular, this encouraged collaboration in the area of Protective Services. The collaborative approach has contributed an additional £18 million to policing in Wales. In 2008, the four Police Authorities and forces in Wales were named the winners of the Association of Police Authorities (APA) Excellence Award for Collaboration, and in 2010 the The Police Authorities of Wales (PAW) was Authority won the WLGA Excellence Wales introduced in 1995 to consider and act upon award for Collaborative projects. issues affecting policing in Wales. It helped to develop and aid collaboration, as well as work on behalf of communities across Wales as a whole. Other Partnerships This became increasingly important following the As well as our links with PAW, much of the work introduction of the National Assembly for Wales. to reduce crime and disorder in the area and Former Chief Executive of South Wales Police assist with public perceptions about safety, has Authority, Alan Fry, was integral in the been achieved through linking with other introduction of PAW and acted as its Honorary partnerships. Secretary from 1995 to 2007. In July 2007, the In 2002, South Wales Police Authority became a arrangement became more formal, and the Police member of each of the Community Safety Authorities of Wales became a statutory Joint Partnerships (CSPs) in the Force area, and has Committee for Policing in Wales. since supported the development of effective The specific aim of PAW has been to proactively partnership responses to improve community pursue opportunities for Welsh forces to safety and reduce crime and disorder. collaborate in order to provide the highest quality In particular we have supported the work of CSPs police service to communities in Wales. In and similar Partnership Boards in tackling anti- particular, PAW initiated a collaborative social behaviour, which has regularly been programme of work in Wales to develop the highlighted as a public concern in our strategic policing capabilities of Protective consultations. We have also supported efforts to Services. tackle drug misuse, which drives criminality such PAW and Welsh forces recognised early on in the as burglary and vehicle crime. collaborative process that there was a need for a The Authority has supported the work of the strategic body to take joint accountability for the Safer South Wales group, which brings together delivery of collaboration programmes and community safety partners from across the Force decision making. area.

27 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

During the Authority’s preparation for the transition to the Police and Crime Commissioner, we have enhanced our links with the voluntary sector. For example, we have developed our links with Victim Support through our engagement with the South Wales Victim’s Advocate project for South Wales. We have also helped the voluntary sector to prepare for the Police & Crime Commissioner landscape through partnership with the Home Office-funded ‘Safer Future Communities’ project. The Police Authority held a Scrutiny Panel on Partnership Working in 2011. This brought together multiple agencies from across South Wales and considered the effectiveness of partnership working in the Force. The Authority was able to make recommendations on how to positively enhance the already comprehensive ways of working with our policing partners. These recommendations continue to be taken forward.

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COLLABORATION In addition to the Police Authorities of Wales Wales Extremism and Counter (PAW) work, we have explored other areas where some of our ‘back office’ functions could Terrorism Unit be joined with other Authorities to provide a This was established in 2006, and created one better service. Special Branch for the whole of Wales. The set up ensures that regional and local intelligence Existing South Wales collaborative arrangements remains linked and can inform regional tasking include : and deployment. Tarian Joint Legal Services This is the Southern Welsh forces’ response to serious and organised cross-border crime, and In 2009, South Wales and Gwent Police contributes considerably to their capacity to deal Authorities agreed to establish a Joint Legal with such crime. It has been in operation for over Services provision, with the aim of providing a 10 years and is resourced by officers from across more robust service for both areas. The joint the southern Welsh forces as well as other approach to Legal Services was the first of its kind agencies, such as H.M Revenue and Customs and in Wales and England and resulted in the the Crown Prosecution Service. reduction of outsourced work, greater economies of scale, improved performance, The unit has seen outstanding results during this greater specialisation and improved development time including: opportunities for staff. • 584 arrests resulting in 632 years of sentencing • The dismantling/disruption of over 140 Air Support Organised Crime Groups South Wales Police also shares its air support • 513 warrants and house searches conducted service with Gwent Police. Tarian is well embedded into core business and supported financially by the Welsh Government. Joint Scientific Investigation Unit It has been subject to ongoing governance through the PAW structure. From April 2012, South Wales and Gwent Forces launched a joint Scientific Investigation Unit. This collaboration will see both Forces having the Regional Asset Recovery Team capacity and capability to deal with forensic This is a multi agency law enforcement team examinations internally, thereby saving in excess which covers the whole of Wales, providing a of £1 million. co-ordinated and joined up law enforcement response to criminality across the country. It has Information and Communication had a significant impact on organised crime. Technology (ICT) Regional Intelligence Unit ICT collaboration aims to reduce costs for ICT provision across the Welsh police forces by This unit was established in 2006 and provides developing a common infrastructure that enables strategic and tactical intelligence to generate a the alignment of ICT software systems. greater understanding of threats facing the region.

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Firearms Authority Members supported the Chief Constable in being part of the pilot, as it was The Joint Firearms Unit has been established to agreed that it would lead to a more effective provide a larger and more resilient pool of service for the public of South Wales. forearms experts across South Wales, Dyfed Powys and Gwent Police Forces. The pilot was carried out in partnership with Cardiff Council. It proved to be a big success in the city, and the Authority and Council agreed to Procurement continue the partnership, despite the withdrawal This project aims to improve efficiency in of Home Office support and funding for the managing procurement by establishing a ‘virtual’ project in 2008. Joint Procurement Unit for South Wales, Dyfed The introduction of a single non-emergency Powys and Gwent. The project seeks to improve number has had a positive effect on the procurement delivery efficiency and the provision communities of South Wales. It has also provided of clear policy guidance and best practice. a drop in the number of 999 emergency calls received, which means our control room operators are free to answer critical calls. Fleet The approach taken in South Wales was This project aims to standardise Fleet processes, highlighted as best practice nationally, leading to procedures and vehicle-related contracts and the development of a single non-emergency systems across Wales. number across Wales. The four Police Forces and Authorities in Wales launched ‘101 Cymru’ in April 2009, providing a single non-emergency number for policing across the whole of the country. This was carried out with the full involvement of the individual Police Authorities, along with the Police Authorities of Wales (PAW). The all-Wales approach demonstrated the positive partnership and collaborative stance to policing service that exists in Wales.

101 Cymru With over 2 million telephone calls received by South Wales Police alone each year, call management is critically important to the running of the organisation. In 2007, South Wales Police launched the 101 Single Non-Emergency Number (SNEN) in Cardiff, as part of the Home Office pilot scheme.

30 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

EFFECTIVE PLANNING AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Planning The Force interviews hundreds of victims of crime every month to robustly assess their One of the key activities for the Authority each satisfaction with the level of service they have year has been to publish a Policing Plan, which received. has set out the priorities for the following 12 months. A key aspect of planning has been the The Community Satisfaction Survey also identifies introduction of risk based assessments of business the perception and experience of crime and anti- cases. social behaviour at a local authority level. The results of this postal survey identify the key This has allowed Members to have a full concerns that people have within their understanding of the implications of decisions, community and can provide the Force with local and to prioritise improvements for the police intelligence. service based on available resources. This has also been linked to the budget requirements each It can also drive further research. As a result of year. recent findings, the Force is further exploring the reporting of hate crime and anti-social behavior, In addition, Members have been provided with both of which have been key concerns to the full details of the policing priorities of the public Police Authority. following our consultation work and that of the Force, as well as those of our partners. South Wales Police has worked in close partnership with Universities’ Police Science This has included victim satisfaction responses, Institute (UPSI) for the last four years to develop community satisfaction surveys and in-depth evidence-based policing approaches to tackling survey work carried out by the Universities’ crime and anti-social behaviour. Police Science Institute (UPSI). This approach has ensured that our Plan has been integrated with Through engaging with communities in new and other activities across South Wales. innovative ways about the issues which matter to them most, the Force has been able to work towards delivering a service which meets Consultation and Research people’s needs. Important results have been Public consultation results have helped to set achieved, including the effective use of local priorities and shape policing in the South intelligence to disrupt localised drug dealing Wales area. Our methods of consultation have activity. altered over the years, and have included Police The introduction of other groundbreaking Community Consultation Groups, road shows, initiatives such as Master classes have helped the surveys and online technology. Force to harness its respective operational and We have sought the public’s views on a number academic expertise in order to develop the of policing priorities and have been informed of knowledge and skills of staff and spread good issues such as the need to tackle anti-social practice initiatives across the Force area. This behaviour and increase a policing presence on the partnership working arrangement has been streets. The Police Authority has ensured that recognised at a national level, most recently by these have been key priorities for the Force. the Home Secretary, Rt Hon. Theresa May. South Wales Police also undertakes a sophisticated consultation programme to improve the delivery of the service it provides.

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Interaction with the Public Young People Since 2004, Authority Members and Staff have Over the years we have aimed to increase our carried out annual road shows across South Wales engagement with young people, for example, by to find out the public’s views about policing issues. establishing social media and engaging with the This has included using an interactive approach South Wales Police Youth Forum. where members of the public have been given token money to ‘spend’ on policing priorities. The public have been asked to place the money in boxes representing different policing issues, according to where they would wish the money to be spent. The results have been analysed and presented to Members to help identify policing priorities for the forthcoming year. Since 2004, over 10,000 people have taken part in this method of consultation. In June 2012, we also took part in a Crucial Crew In 2006, the Police Authority was the winner of event in Neath Port Talbot, at which 550 young the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) people aged between 9 and 11 were invited to Local Government Group ‘Best Consultation tell us their policing priorities. Campaign’ award for this ‘Spend our Money’ consultation method. We have also supported groups that engage with young people, particularly those from a Police Authority Members have also regularly disadvantaged background. The Police Authority attended community ‘Police & Communities was one of the key drivers in establishing the Together’ (PACT) meetings, to listen to local Princes’ Trust franchise in South Wales until 2011 concerns. They have been able to raise ongoing and we have been part of the South Wales Police issues with their regular meetings with Force Youth Trust, established in 2009, which aims to Divisional Commanders. support projects that prevent youth criminalisation.

Public Meetings Over the years, the Police Authority has held a number of public meetings to enable the public to meet with Members and Officers. These have included Police Community Consultative Groups, which took place across South Wales on a quarterly basis. At these groups, members of the public would be invited to attend and discuss any local issues with Members and divisional representatives of the force. Public meetings have more recently been held to discuss specific issues of concern with the community, such as our ‘Spotlight on Policing’ meetings in 2011 to discuss policing budget issues.

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Local Accountability Panels Relationship with the Independent Between 2006 and 2008 the Police Authority ran Advisory Group Local Accountability Panel pilots in Swansea and An important partner for the Police Authority has the Vale of Glamorgan. This enabled community been the Force’s Strategic Independent Advisory representatives from the local authority, Group (IAG). Neighbourhood Watch, local Race Equality Councils, local businesses and others, to meet The IAG is made up of members of the public together with the Police Authority and Divisional from a range of different backgrounds and it Commanders in the Police Force. provides a helpful independent input to the Force on policing issues which particularly impact on Local policing concerns were discussed and the minority groups in the community. panels considered the way in which the issues were being tackled at a local level. The work We have worked closely and positively with this highlighted the importance of openness and group. The Police Authority has attended all transparency in addressing community policing strategic IAG meetings in recent years and the issues. The pilot exercises were able to feed into IAG has been invited to attend annually at our the Police Authority’s overall partnership work. Equalities and HR Group to present their work outcomes and views. Working closely with the IAG has enabled us to Engagement with Minority consider independent and diverse views when Groups setting our equality and policing priorities for the The Police Authority has always worked to Force and for the Authority. ensure that its community engagement The IAG Members have been an important part programme has been inclusive and has of the Police Authority’s stop and search scrutiny encouraged the views of diverse groups. and dip sampling process. We have carried out a range of engagement We have also ensured the IAG’s involvement in events targeted at minority groups, including the appointment of Chief Police Officers. A International Women’s Day events for Black and representative of the IAG has been part of a peer Minority Ethnic women, Cardiff Pride, Swansea assessment panel we compiled in order to help to Mardi Gras and Cardiff Multicultural Mela. question interview candidates applying for senior We have given presentations to Race Equality positions. Councils, faith groups, youth forums and disability This has ensured that equality has been taken into consultation events, and have visited mosques consideration during this critical area of our and other places of worship in order to establish work. and maintain positive relationships with our diverse communities. This engagement work has been enhanced through training of Police Authority Members on equality issues. Members have attended a number of awareness seminars and events that have been delivered jointly with the Force, on issues including Gypsies, Travellers and Emerging Communities, Black History and LGBT History.

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34 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY South Wales Police Authority has been proud of The process enabled the completed EIAs in the its commitment to Equality and Diversity, and the Force to be independently challenged by the work it has carried out to promote equality in Authority, which resulted in recommendations for both the Police Authority and Force. improvement. Pleasingly these recommendations were regularly accepted and led to policy changes We have worked to ensure that respect for being made, that attempted to reduce any equality and diversity for all of the protected potential adverse impacts on minority groups. characteristics under the Equality Act, has been evident and promoted throughout our activities. Since the Police Authority process, a more stringent internal quality assurance process for As a Police Authority in Wales, we have also EIAs in the Force has also been set up, enabling recognised the Welsh language as an equality checks to be made on the assessments in the way strand and have worked to promote language the Police Authority has recommended. equality in our activities. In 2010 we adopted an Equality Vision, which We have monitored South Wales Police stated we were ‘Promoting equality to ensure a performance in relation to equality issues for a fair and accountable police service that responds number of years and have worked to encourage to community needs and encourages an inclusive improvements in key areas. workplace culture’. Much of our work since that time has been carried out with this vision in mind. Monitoring Equality Work The Police Authority established a designated Equality Scheme and Objectives committee to monitor Force equality In 2010, Authority Members introduced an performance in 2007. Equalities and Human Rights Scheme. This set out Since that time the group evolved to become the what the Authority wanted to achieve in terms of Equalities and Human Resources (HR) Group, equality issues and how it would do so. which has effectively monitored, challenged and The scheme was a critical piece of work and was scrutinised the Force on equality and Human completed following extensive consultation work Resources issues. As well as using the established with minority groups. It replaced the previous committee structure, we developed a number of Race, Gender and Disability Equality Schemes other activities to monitor aspects of equality and that were in place and aimed to demonstrate our diversity work in South Wales Police genuine commitment to all strands of diversity. For example, Members carefully monitored the In May 2012, the Equality Scheme was replaced implementation of the Equality Standard for the by new objectives set out in an Equality Plan. As Police Service (ESPS) in South Wales Police. an Authority, we were proud of the objectives This is a national performance management developed, as they are a clear step forward for framework consisting of three levels that aims to developing equality work across the organisation. encourage improvements in equality across the police service. Members monitored the Force’s progress towards the first level of the framework and after a challenging scrutiny process, the Authority signed off this level in 2011. In addition, Members carried out an Equality Impact Assessment (EIA) Quality Assurance process on some Force policies.

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Our Equality Objectives 2012 3. Young People Engagement In 2012, Members agreed four-year equality We committed to working to increase the objectives, as required by legislation and proportion of children and young people we highlighted below. Even though the Authority was engaged with during the year, including increasing to be abolished later in the year, Members felt it the numbers of children and young people on our was appropriate to set four-year targets so that consultation panel. We agreed to engage with they could be put forward for the Police and children and young people on issues that were Crime Commissioner to consider using for the relevant to them. future. The objectives agreed were : 1. Hate Crime Hate Crime We committed to monitoring and scrutinising the The Police Authority has monitored hate crime in way in which the Force handles hate crime the Force area for a number of years. This has incidents, pushing for increases in the satisfaction primarily been through the Equalities & HR of hate crime victims across each of the Group and has included monitoring incident protected characteristics that are monitored. In reporting numbers for hate crimes relating to conjunction with South Wales Police, we also race, disability, sexual orientation, faith and committed to working to increase the reporting transgender. As an Authority we have worked to of hate incidents among communities, particularly encourage the Force to make incident reporting among those from groups currently less likely to easier and we have seen positive rises in report. confidence to report across all hate crime 2. Diversity in Employment strands. In order to ensure that the Force effectively represents the communities it serves, we Hate Crime Reporting committed to monitoring the profile of South • Racist Incidents – In 1996-97 a total of 357 Wales Police employees and encouraging the racist incidents were reported. This rose to Force to appropriately address under 1615 incident reports in 2011-12. representation of, and support the progression of, under represented groups. • Homophobic Incidents – In 1999-2000 a total of 172 homophobic incidents were reported. This rose to 350 incident reports in 2011-12. • Faith Hate Incidents – In 1996-7 a total of 15 faith hate incidents were reported. This rose to 81 reports in 2011-12. • Disability Hate Incidents – In 2008-09 a total of 99 disability hate incidents were reported. This rose to 339 reports in 2011-12. • Transphobic Incidents – In 2008-09 a total of 24 transphobic incidents were reported. This rose to 48 reports in 2011-12.

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South Wales Police has developed its approach to Stop and Search hate crime through the employment of Hate Stop and Search is a valuable policing tool and Crime Officers in each division. Excellent legislative requirement, which helps to keep our partnership working with groups such as communities safe. It enables police officers to Disability Wales and Safer Wales has also sought search individuals if they have reasonable grounds to encourage confidence in communities to to suspect they are carrying drugs, weapons, report. stolen property or items that could be used to The Force and Police Authority have also strongly commit a crime. promoted the all-Wales Hate Crime Reporting Stop and Search can be an emotive policing Scheme, developed via Safer Wales (‘Report Hate power as it has the potential to infringe on – Safer Wales’). This has been able to encourage someone’s liberties. It also raises community third party reporting of hate crime in interest because of the national statistics that communities. show that black and minority ethnic (BME) The Authority has also keenly monitored the people are disproportionately stopped and Force’s approach to hate crime training across searched when compared with population the Force and has monitored the roll-out of hate statistics for white people. crime training among officers and staff during the Given the community significance of this power, implementation of the Force’s Hate Crime Victim the Police Authority has instigated a number of Satisfaction Development Plan. activities in recent years to ensure that South Overall, victim satisfaction of those that have Wales Police has been carefully monitored for its reported hate crime to the Force has pleasingly use of stop search powers. risen following our drive for improvement and For example, the Authority has received detailed the Force’s determined efforts to concentrate on stop search statistical reports at its Equalities & improving hate crime response among our HR Group and has had representation on the communities. The satisfaction of hate crime South Wales Police Stop Search Board. In 2010, victims rose from 72.3% in 2004-5 to 79.2% in an HMIC inspection report recognised that the 2011-12. Police Authority was ‘active in addressing The Police Authority has also monitored the disproportionality in stop and search’. Force’s response to the Equality and Human We have also worked to raise awareness of Rights Commission (EHRC) Inquiry into people’s rights should they be stopped and Disability-Related Harassment. searched by police, by giving out national ‘Know We expressed our early support for the inquiry Your Rights’ information to communities. recommendations and the way that they aimed to reduce disability hate crime occurrences. We asked the Force to provide the Authority with updates on how they would respond to the inquiry recommendations. This work has continued into 2012 and the Authority has been pleased to see a dedicated commitment to implementing the inquiry recommendations within South Wales Police.

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Dip Sampling Stop and Search Forms Welsh Language Scheme Since 2010, the Police Authority has undertaken a The Police Authority has been committed to number of stop search dip sampling sessions. The Welsh language equality and we have shared a sessions have enabled completed stop and search joint Welsh Language Scheme with South Wales forms in all four divisions of the Force to be Police for a number of years. independently scrutinised by Police Authority As part of our commitment to improving Welsh Members, staff, Independent Advisory Group language provision to our communities, Police representatives and invited members of the Authority Members undertook basic Welsh community. linguistic courtesy training as part of their roles The completed forms have been considered for and have demonstrated a positive and supportive their accuracy and for legitimacy in terms of use of ethos towards the language. We were pleased to stop search powers and grounds for search. In have increased the proportion of Welsh speakers 2010, HMIC referred to the community approach on the Authority and among our volunteer to this work as demonstrating ‘the Authority’s custody visitors in recent years, in order to commitment to transparency’. reflect the increasing numbers of people wishing The dip sample sessions have also enabled to communicate through the medium of Welsh attention to be given to forms relating to black or across Wales. minority ethnic (BME) individuals. Given the focus We have also monitored the Force on their on stop search disproportionality in terms of progress with the Welsh Language Scheme and ethnicity, it has been considered particularly other initiatives. This has included the important to look at the forms relating to BME appointment of a Welsh Language Trainer, Welsh people to ensure the power has been Language Officer and in-house translator. The appropriately used. Authority has also been represented on the Findings from recent stop search dip sampling internal Welsh Language Steering Group in order sessions led to the Police Authority making some to be involved in promoting Welsh language recommendations to the Force. Areas of particular commitments jointly with the Force. significance included the need to ensure that The Force has also provided training officers were fully aware of legitimate grounds to opportunities for staff and officers to develop search someone and comply with the their Welsh language skills. These have been requirements at all times. The Authority did not underpinned by the Force Welsh Language find stop and search disproportionality issues Awards, which have been supported by the relating to BME individuals within the forms that Authority. It has been particularly significant that were dip sampled. the Chief Constable has given his commitment to In the Summer of 2012, we carried out another leading by example in the promotion of the Welsh stop search dip sampling exercise. We were language. Having undertaken Welsh language pleased to find that 8% fewer forms showed training over recent years, he passed his WJEC questionable grounds for search. There were also ‘Mynediad’ course in 2012 and was the recipient improvements in the numbers of forms where of a Force Welsh Language award. outcomes had been clearly recorded and in the The Police Authority has been pleased with the numbers of forms that had been satisfactorily positive commitment the Force has shown to signed off by supervisors. The Force has responded Welsh language issues and to the joint working positively to Police Authority involvement in stop arrangements in place. and search work and has supported our desire to provide public reassurance in this area.

38 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

HUMAN RESOURCES Chief Officer Appointments Equality and Diversity in One of the most important duties for South Employment Wales Police Authority has been to appoint the The Police Authority has worked over a number Chief Police Officers of the Force. of years to encourage the Force to be as The Police Authority developed an in-depth and representative of South Wales communities as challenging appointment process, which has possible. We have set stretching employment ensured South Wales Police has attracted and targets for race and gender within the Force, recruited the best candidates to take forward the which has had a positive effect on the strategic direction of the Force. representation of diversity. Chief Officer selection processes have included Female police officer representation in South candidates giving a presentation to an external Wales Police has risen from 13.55% in March peer group, containing representatives from 1999 to 23.8% in July 2012. In 2000, 1.3% of partners such as the Welsh Local Government police officers were from a black or minority Association, the Force Independent Advisory ethnic background. This had risen to 2.2% by Group, Neighbourhood Watch Association, the March 2012. Crown Prosecution Service and a Local Service In 2010, Members also set employment targets Board. The peer group has been able to question for disability, religion and sexual orientation. candidates prior to the final interview and These had been found to be the least disclosed selection stage consisting only of Police Authority equality strands within the employee equality Members. We have been particularly proud of monitoring system, showing that Force opening up an aspect of the appointment process employees were less likely to inform the Force to independent input from partners, in order to about their status with regard to these strands demonstrate our open and accountable approach than they were to disclose their gender or race to selecting our Chief Officers. status. Since 1995, we have appointed 4 Chief As a result the Authority aimed to encourage the Constables and over 20 Deputy and Assistant Force to instil a positive culture that would Chief Constables, all of whom have played a reduce the numbers of people that felt unable to significant part in shaping South Wales Police. declare these responses. The targets were set The Chief Constables appointed by the Authority with the support of the staff associations, with since 1995 have been : whom we worked closely. It was agreed that we would encourage the Force to reduce the Mr Bob Evans (Temporary) • numbers of non-disclosed responses for each of • Sir Anthony Burden QPM these strands by a third. Disclosures and • Miss Barbara Wilding CBE QPM confidence to disclose rose positively following the target introduction, with the targets having • Mr Peter Vaughan (current Chief Constable) been well exceeded for police officers. Much of this confidence is likely to be attributed to the positive work the Force has carried out to promote diversity across the organisation.

39 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

Visible leadership around diversity has also been In 1995 there were 3,168 police officers with an important, for example through the Force additional 1,185 full time police support staff and Equality & Diversity Board, chaired by the Chief 269 part time staff. Most recent 2012 figures Constable and through the active role of the show there are 2,977 full time equivalent police Police Authority’s Equalities & HR Group. officers and 2,080 full time equivalent support staff, including Police Community Support We have also worked to demonstrate a positive Officers (PCSOs). commitment to equality at work. Our approach to fairness at work through the development of PCSOs were introduced in 2003 in South Wales. staff was recognised in 2006 when we became Although initially met with scepticism by some the first Welsh Police Authority to achieve members of the community, PCSOs have ‘Investors in People’ status, and we were become a positive visible presence on streets successfully reaccredited in 2009. across South Wales and are now an essential part of neighbourhood policing. In 2008, we were the first Welsh Police Authority to receive the Two Ticks Disability Symbol, which The Police Authority supported the introduction demonstrates a positive commitment to disabled of PCSOs as we felt it would ensure a more people in employment. visible policing presence within communities, which members of the public had regularly stated In 2010 the Authority was pleased to have been as a priority. Members have continued to monitor accredited with the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and the use of PCSOs to ensure their continued Transgender (LGBT) Rainbow Mark, which effectiveness and have been encouraged by the demonstrated our commitment to LGBT equality. positive public response to their presence. We were also pleased to have been re-accredited in 2012. In addition we have encouraged the Force to Health & Safety improve its rating within the national Stonewall The Police Authority has keenly supported and Workplace Equality Index. This saw the Force promoted the Health & Safety work of the Force. move to 23rd in the Stonewall Top 100 The Force Health, Safety & Welfare Committee Employers index 2012 – a list of Britain’s most has been chaired by a Police Authority Member. gay-friendly workplaces. This rating was the This Committee has considered health and safety highest among Wales Police Forces and the issues including stress and wellbeing, avoiding second highest-rated UK Police Force in the 2012 injuries at work and healthy lifestyle initiatives. list. The Authority’s Equalities & Human Resources Group has also received regular updates on the Employment Levels Force’s Health & Safety work. The strong Police Authority support and oversight has meant that The number of officers within South Wales Police Health & Safety issues have been continually has fallen slightly between 1995 and 2012. This monitored and addressed. The significant has been the result of the funding challenge reduction in injuries and the major improvements imposed by the Government’s Comprehensive in employee attendance are testament to this Spending Review in 2010, which saw the focus. The Authority has also contributed to announcement of a 20% cut in police funding Force Health & Safety policies, procedures and over the next four years. practices for the past 17 years.

40 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

QUALITY OF SERVICE Complaints Monitoring Incivility The Police Authority has been responsible for Police Authority Members identified that investigating complaints against Chief Police allegations of incivility had been one of the most Officers. This has been a critical area of work for common types of complaint made against officers Members, as it has provided an independent of South Wales Police by the public. accountability for the public. The Quality of Service Group has therefore In addition to their investigative duties, Members pushed for this to be investigated further, and the have had a duty to monitor complaints made Professional Standards Department in the Force against police staff and police officers below the has worked hard to reduce the level of this type rank of Assistant Chief Constable. These of complaint. This has included the identification complaints have been investigated by the Force of individual officers on each division so that Professional Standards Department or the appropriate management action could be taken. Independent Police Complaints Commission The extra work which the Department has been (IPCC) as appropriate, with Police Authority carrying out is testament to how seriously they Members reviewing progress as necessary. are taking incivility complaints. This monitoring role has been achieved through The Force has also developed its training for all our Quality of Service Group, which has received officers and staff, to ensure that it includes full quarterly reports from the Professional Standards awareness of the values and standards of the Department of the Force. In considering these, organisation. As a result of this work, the number Members have scrutinised any increases or of allegations of incivility dropped by 39% in decreases in the number of complaints and 2011-12, when compared with figures for 2010- allegations made against officers and staff. In 11. addition, they have considered any trends within the reports, particularly in terms of the types of allegations and the divisions of the force from Dip Sampling of Complaints which they have been received. The Police Authority has also been instrumental In 2011-12, the total number of allegations in ensuring that complaint cases received by received was 1,047, which was a decrease of 123 South Wales Police have been dealt with (or 10.5%) on the previous year. Over recent appropriately. This has been achieved through years, South Wales Police has closely examined regular dip-sampling of random complaint files. each complaint to extract each individual Members have carried out this duty on a allegation as one complaint case could contain quarterly basis to improve the accountability of two or more different allegations. the police service regarding complaints. By In 1995-96, the total number of complaints was completing this independent check, the public has 1071, with the total number of complainants been able to be reassured that complaints have being 866. The number of individual complainants been considered carefully and fairly by the during 2011-12 was 612, which was a decrease of Professional Standards Department. 30 compared to the previous year. The results of each dip-sampling session, together While it is not possible to directly compare the with any areas of concern and recommendations, 1995-96 figures with the 2011-12 results due to have been reported to the Quality of Service regulation changes, there has been a drop in the Group and the Independent Police Complaints number of complainants by a total of 258. Commission (IPCC).

41 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

Over a number of years, Members have This improved the quality of the complaints undertaken dip sampling of complaints files to process for members of the public, and ensured ascertain information on the following areas : that they were processed effectively. The form was structured to provide comprehensive • Rationale behind withdrawn complaints guidance to clearly specify what information • Timeliness of complaint investigation would be relevant for the complainant to provide. • Treatment of the complainant The structured information received by the • Treatment of the officer Authority following this set-up, has enabled a smoother investigative process. This in turn has Proportionality • provided speedier results for complainants, • Clarity of investigative findings coupled with the opportunity of renewing a relationship of trust and confidence between the • Justification for the outcome Authority and members of the public who have • Completeness of paper files felt aggrieved. Any issues have been recorded and monitored, The online form used also included a section to ensuring lessons could be learned to prevent gather the demographic information about them from happening again. They have also been complainants, which has enabled us to gather discussed during regular meetings with the meaningful data that has aided our equality Professional Standards Department and the monitoring work, and allowed us to establish IPCC. emerging trends or issues. Fortunately, the dip sampling process has not In 2010, the Authority’s online complaints system revealed any areas of significant concern for the was shortlisted for an ‘Innovation’ award at the Police Authority. However, during the process, Association of Police Authorities (APA) Members have identified improvements for the Excellence Awards. Force, such as ensuring that complaint update reports are received from Basic Command Units. Building Relationships Online Complaints Form In order to fulfil the Quality of Service work effectively, it has been important to build effective Members have felt that an effective complaint relationships with others. Members and officers system has been paramount to ensuring that the have worked over a number of years to create public has been able to seek redress on occasions effective and positive working relationships with where expected standards have not been met. the Force Professional Standards Department This has not only been important to maintain the (PSD) and the IPCC. confidence of the public in the police and our Such relationships have developed through own oversight function, but to learn from attendance at regular tripartite meetings between mistakes made, improve the service and offer an the IPCC, PSD and the Police Authority, as well apology or explanation where this has been as weekly meetings between the Police Authority warranted. and PSD in addition to the dip-sampling sessions In 2010, we became the first Police Authority in undertaken by Members on a quarterly basis. the country to have an online complaint form on our website.

42 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

Such meetings have afforded Members the Forfeiture of police pension matters have also opportunity to raise concerns on specific matters been considered by Members. This is where a as they have arisen, and have ensured that the police officer has been convicted of an offence Authority has remained sighted on voluntary and committed in connection with his or her service, mandatory matters referred to the IPCC as they and which has been certified by the Secretary of have progressed. State either to have been gravely injurious to the interests of the State or liable to lead to serious The Authority has also played a prominent role in loss of confidence in the public service. ensuring the implementation of guidance provided to the Force by the IPCC through The forfeiture process has been split into three quarterly ‘Learning the Lessons’ bulletins. stages which involved the Panel’s consideration of Attendance at Force meetings to discuss these application for a certificate of forfeiture from the bulletins has allowed the Group to provide Secretary of State, the provision of that certificate detailed updates to the IPCC regarding progress where appropriate, and determination of the being made to implement any recommendations. extent to which the pension should be forfeited. These meetings, in conjunction with the Quality Members also provided membership to the of Service Group meetings, have enabled the police appeals tribunal panel, which has Authority to be at the forefront of positive comprised of a Chair (an appropriate QC implementation and change in the Force. selected from a Home Office list), Chief Police Officer from an outside Force, a retired officer of appropriate rank to the appellant and a Police Appeals Authority Member selected from the Appeals Alongside the Quality of Service area of work, the Panel. Authority has also had responsibility for providing Between 2010 and 2012, the Authority’s Appeals an Appeals Panel. Panel : The work undertaken by Members of the • Convened four staff disciplinary appeals Appeals Panel has been varied and challenging and has included : • Convened five forfeiture of pension matters Provided membership to seven police appeals • The provision of an appeals procedure for • police staff members against dismissal tribunal matters • Consideration of police pension forfeiture matters Standards Committee • Membership of the Police Appeals Tribunal The Police Authority has operated a Standards panel to which dismissed police officers would Committee in order to ensure that the standards present an appeal against dismissal. and integrity of the Authority itself have been upheld. The committee has consisted of five In considering these issues, Members have been Members – two Police Authority Members and required to attain specific knowledge relating to three independent representatives appointed legislation such as Home Office circulars and following public advertisement. One of the Police Appeals Tribunal Rules, together with independent members has acted as committee current case law and internal Authority appeals Chair. procedures.

43 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

The purpose of the committee has been to monitor Code of Conduct issues, including investigating and determining any complaints referred to it under statutory provisions. The committee has carried out related activities including the inspection and monitoring of the Authority’s public registers - the Members Interests Register, the Register of Gifts and Hospitality and the Register of Declarations of Interests. It has also been responsible for inspecting Force registers regarding Chief Officers. The committee has helped to maintain high standards of integrity in the Authority, and its members have assisted in promoting this important ethos. It has been pleasing that no formal conduct issues against Members have come before the Standards Committee during the Authority’s time.

44 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

ACKNOWLEDGING AND REPRESENTING OUR COMMUNITIES Community Safety Volunteer • Rita Limbrick in 2007 - for her involvement in a Awards number of voluntary activities in the Barry area, including a Multicultural Café, and South Wales Police Authority introduced the fundraising for charities and organisations. Community Safety Volunteer awards in 2005 to Saifur Rahman in 2008 - for his work in helping reward those in our communities who voluntarily • to integrate members of the local Muslim help to keep our streets safe. community with others in the area. The scheme has enabled us to engage with a range of people and organisations across South Wales and has promoted the positive voluntary work that people carry out in their communities. The awards have recognised individuals, teams, initiatives and young people. Since the launch of the awards, a total of 232 individuals and 78 teams have been honoured for their work. Over the years, the awards have developed to consist of four categories : • Community Safety Volunteer of the Year Young Community Safety Volunteer of the Year • • Croeserw Youth Action Group in 2009 - (Under 21) for their work in making their area a safer • Community Safety Volunteer Team of the Year place and considering more activities for young people. • Community Safety Volunteer Initiative of the Year • Taslima Ali and Samaya Mohammed in 2010 - for the support they provided to victims of honour based violence and forced marriage. Selecting the winners • 3Gs Forsythia Youth Gwirvol Volunteers in All Members of the Police Authority have been 2011 - for their work in a range of activities involved in selecting the winners of the awards. aimed at making the Gurnos area of Merthyr Selection has involved considering the extent of Tydfil safer, including organising trips, helping at the work undertaken and the benefits the residential homes and helping to drive forward activities have brought to the community. a community gym. • The Safer Wales Volunteer Team in 2012 - for Winners their work in providing support for women and young girls who were victims of domestic and The following were named as the overall winners sexual violence in the Cardiff area. since the awards were introduced : • June Johnson in 2005 - for her work in tackling anti-social behaviour in the Bayside Donations Estate in Cardiff. If property comes into the possession of the • Tammie Richards in 2006 - for her work with police in connection with a crime and the owner young people, including running a “drop in cannot be found, it can be sold. The money centre” at Sarn Community Centre. resulting from the sale is then kept in a Police Property Act Fund.

45 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

The same is true for property which has been • The Afan Tawe Nedd Neighbourhood Watch forfeited by convicted people by order of a court, Association in Neath Port Talbot, received where it was used or intended for use in a crime. £2086 in 2011, to provide home security items Each year we have used our Police Property Act to vulnerable members of the community. Fund to actively donate money to a range of local • Rhondda Cynon Taf People First received organisations and charities. The donations have £2225 in 2010, which helped to provide been made to those that have worked to training to people with learning disabilities, so promote community safety and youth they would be able to deliver training about engagement or to enhance crime prevention and disability hate crime. combat anti-social behaviour. This has included donations to local youth clubs, sport teams and other organisations. Since 2005, over £150,000 has been donated to 204 community groups in South Wales. Some of the groups that have received donations have included : • The Bridgend Youth Council received a grant of £522 in 2006, towards producing a film explaining the Anti Social Behaviour Order • Ty Fforest Community House Youth Club in process. Swansea, received £1250 in 2011, which assisted with the recruitment of youth workers. The South Wales Police Youth Trust was established in 2009, with the overall aim of preventing the criminalisation of children and young people and diverting them from anti-social behaviour. The Police Authority has supported the Trust since its inception and we are among the Trustees that work to ensure the Trust’s funds are used fairly and to the maximum benefit of communities. The Trust’s funds are raised from those who are concerned with local community safety issues, • The Butetown Youth Pavilion was awarded a such as official bodies, private donors, other trusts £2470 donation in 2011, for an in-house and the business sector. diversionary programme for young people in In 2010 the Trust began distributing grants to Butetown, Cardiff. communities. Between 2010 and 2012 a total of • Merthyr Youth received a donation of nearly £20,428 was distributed through 15 separate £1000 in 2012, which helped to purchase new donations. These donations were made to provide equipment for the club. support to individuals, community groups or clubs where it was agreed the award would be • Sully Youth Club received a donation of £1000 in 2006, towards the purchase of flood lights. promoting the Trust’s aims.

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Independent Custody Visiting Animal Welfare Visiting Scheme With over 40,000 people held in police custody in South Wales every year, it is important to ensure that their legal rights are protected during detention. We have been running an Independent Custody Visiting Scheme for this reason since 1995. The scheme became a statutory responsibility in 2002, and will remain a responsibility of the Police and Crime Commissioner. The Scheme has meant that volunteer members of the public have been responsible for visiting police custody units on a weekly basis. They have carried out checks on the welfare of detainees and the conditions of the cells in which they are held. This has provided community reassurances regarding Our Animal Welfare Visiting Scheme was the welfare of those in custody and ensures that introduced by the Authority in 2001. It enables there is transparency and accountability in this volunteer members of the public to provide an element of policing. independent check on the condition and welfare of South Wales Police dogs and horses at the Dog and Over 150 volunteers have been involved with the Mounted Section. scheme since it started. Their work and dedication has led to improvements within custody suites Since 2001, over 500 visits have been made by the across South Wales. The reports they complete volunteers. They have checked on the treatment of after each visit enable any safety or welfare the animals as well as the conditions of kennels, concerns about individual detainees or cell stables, police dog vans and horseboxes. conditions to be highlighted to the Force. In turn They have also observed training sessions with new the Force is then able to successfully address these police dogs and horses, so that they could monitor concerns. the conditions in which the animals have been Our Independent Custody Visiting Scheme was trained. highlighted in the 2012 inspection report on The visitors have been trained for their roles by a custody services in South Wales, by Her Majesty’s local vet, the RSPCA and Officers from the Dog Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) and Her and Mounted Section. Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP). This stated that Independent Custody Visiting was an Police Authority Members have chaired panel “important independent oversight mechanism”. meetings between the volunteers, the Force, the RSCPA, Dogs Trust, PDSA and a local vet, so that Police Authority Members have chaired quarterly issues can be discussed. panel meetings with the volunteers and the Force in order to discuss findings arising from custody The scheme has provided an assurance that animal visits. The Chairs have been able to intervene on welfare is at the forefront of the Force’s approach any difficult issues, and bring them to the attention to its work with police dogs and horses. of the Chief Police Officers within the Force. Between April 2002 and March 2012, a total of 5094 visits were carried out by our volunteers, and 7774 detainees were visited.

47 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

48 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE South Wales Police Authority will be replaced by a Police & Crime Commissioner on 21st November 2012. We are handing over the role of oversight and governance at a time when South Wales Police is producing excellent results in difficult financial times. We are proud of the way in which the Authority has led, advised and guided the Force over the last 17 years and we commend the Force for its current performance. Police Authorities have had a critical role in being the bridge between the police and the public. We have worked to ensure that the concerns of the public have been heard and acted on in South Wales. With current crime levels being the lowest they have been for almost 30 years, the Authority feels confident that the future of the Force is a positive one. We wish the incoming South Wales Police & Crime Commissioner well and ask that he or she continues to drive forward the positive legacy we leave behind.

49 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

OUR MEMBERS AND OFFICERS Former Councillor Members Former Independent Members Vic Alexander Dr Parvaiz Ali Gordon Bunn Mohammed Anwar John Codd Manju Baruah Noel Crowley CBE Moawia Bin-Sufyan Clive Davies Ivor Gittens Tim Davies Layla Hoque Jeff Edwards MBE OSTJ JP Edward Jones Elwyn Emmanuel Josephine Jones Brian Finn Brian Mackerill Jacqui Gasson Pat Peters Russell Goodway Sue Prosser Mike Hedges Helen Roberts Gordon Houlston Viv Rudall Ralph Hughes Reverend Canon Phillip White Jonathan Huish George Wright MBE Jeff James Mel John Final Police Authority Members Jeff Jones Gordon Kemp Councillors : Rene Kinzett Ernie Galsworthy Len Lewis MBE Pauline Jarman Terry Mahoney CBE Kate Lloyd Howard Morgan Gretta Marshall Barry Murray (Former Chair) Neil Moore W J Murphy Mel Nott JP Bernard Rees Pearleen Sangha Derek Rees MBE Robert Smith Russell Roberts (Former Chair) Gareth Sullivan Ray Thomas MBE (Former Chair) Alun Thomas Derek Vaughan Independents: Claire Waller Anne Abel (Vice Chair) Sue Waller-Thomas Arjan Ali Julie Williams Graham Bingham Jayne Woodman Mike Lewis John Littlechild MBE JP (Chair) Former Magistrate Members Bob Lloyd Joy Whinney Phillip Mantle JP Elizabeth Martin-Jones MBE JP Final Standards Committee Peter Muxworthy MBE JP Maldwyn Rees JP Independent Members Ruth Davies David Hughes (Chair) Deirdre Jones

50 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

Former Police Authority Chief Officers Alan Fry OBE (Chief Executive) Lyn James (Treasurer)

Former Police Authority Officers Liz Denton Elaine Howard Gaynor Howells Viv Makin David Mills Alexandra Williams

Final Police Authority Officers Mark Brace Francesca Hill Umar Hussain (Treasurer) Hannah Jenkins Andrea Jones Leah Lewis Sue Poole Cerith Thomas (Interim Chief Executive)

51 SOUTH WALES POLICE AUTHORITY LEGACY STATEMENT 1995- 2012

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